Watch This U.S. Submarine Bust Through the Arctic Ice

The U.S. military is in the midst of a five-week exercise to test how well it can operate north of the Arctic Circle. ICEX 2016 involves the U.S. Navy, Air Force, and Army working together to ensure the U.S. can project power into an increasingly navigable and important region.

Traditionally, the Arctic has been a low military priority for everybody. The bitter cold makes it inhospitable. The lack of dry land makes stationing forces there difficult. Outposts are generally limited to arctic research, early warning radar, and meteorological stations.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Global warming is changing that. Rising temperatures are contributing to a decline in Arctic sea ice and a rise in human activity way up north. Less ice means previously unreachable arctic resources can now be accessed and a new Arctic shipping route might be possible—two new things for human beings to fight over.

The easiest way to operate in the Arctic is to fly over it or sail under it. ICEX 2016 involved two submarines—USS Hartford from the Atlantic Fleet and USS Hampton from the Pacific Fleet—conducting multiple trips under the ice, surfacing at the North Pole, and conducting training specific to arctic conditions.

Most Popular

A key part of the exercise was establishing a temporary ice camp—Camp Sargo—north of the Arctic Circle. Sargo was then reinforced with an airdrop from a C-17 Globemaster III transport. Flying from Alaska, the C-17 airdropped a dozen Air Force and National Guard soldiers plus a 9,500-pound "arctic sustainment package." U.S. Army Air National Guard Blackhawk helicopters flew north to land at the camp. USS Hartford also surfaced at Camp Sargo, dramatically breaking through the ice sheet within view of the camp:

The United States isn't the only country to show new interest in the arctic region. Russia, which encompasses nearly half of the region, is building up military forces there. China is also trying to get in the game, but has been hobbled by the fact that it doesn't actually have any territory in the region.

Despite a general warming trend, conditions north of the Arctic Circle are still numbingly cold: Barrow, Alaska—350 miles north of the Circle but still 1,200 miles below the North Poke—is a brisk -9 degrees Fahrenheit right now, with winds at 16 miles an hour. As the Arctic ice sheet continues to disappear expect more military exercises designed to ensure the U.S. and its allies access to the new frontier—or deny it to someone else.